FanPost

Phoenix Suns Offseason Review: Eyes on The Valley



bird_logo_300.0.jpg

Looking at the "Summer Craft" of the Phoenix Suns (So Far)

So while there appears to be a lull in overall off-season activity for your Phoenix Suns, I thought I might go over some of the things that have happened, and tell you guys exactly what it all means my thoughts on the various situations!

Since the end of the 2013-2014 Phoenix Suns regular season...

A lot of things have happened in the valley. Many things happened exactly as bloggers, analysts, pundits, and Ghandi expected. Many other things happened that caused a substantial spike in dandruff cultivation, or head scratching. Shampoo, kids.
Still, other things happened that seemed to come out of nowhere. Things that apparently we should have expected but didn't due to a myriad of factors: "experts" conditioning, homer-ism, unrealistic expectations in regards to situations where we ourselves would act in the exact same way as those we are bashing for acting in that way. Doesn't matter, they happened.
So.. Why not go over some of them? I'll give you my take on a few key issues. This will not be in chronological order. Just float with me, as the tide guides me around.

The 2014 NBA Draft: "The Phoenix Suns select..."

Before we get into the names, lets get into the ideology of Suns GM Ryan McDonough in regards to what he's looking for in young players. Traits and characteristics that eloquently describe, and thus reveal players who would and / or could be selected by the McMastermind.

When you think of the Phoenix Suns, you think of fast-paced offensive basketball, aggressive, putting a lot of pressure on the defense. And we're trying to bring that back.
Our very own Dave King's article a year ago

We're going to try to field a team that is good on both ends of the floor.

USA Today's McDonough introductory GM article in 2013

We don't have anybody who is so entrenched that we would say, 'alright, let's not worry about this position and let's just draft other positions.' Generally, we just try to take whoever the best players are and then let them battle it out with the guys on our current roster.

Suns Blog just before 2013 draft

Fast players, athletic specimens. Players with 2-way potential - guys able to contribute on both offense and defense.
Last draft, the Suns selected Alex Len (5) and Archie Goodwin (29) as investments that fit the mold. Both athletic for their position and purpose, and both with 2-way skills complimented by a potentially-elite skill in one or more areas.

So, with the multiple picks in the 2014 NBA Draft, the Phoenix Suns select: T.J. Warren, Tyler Ennis, Bogdan Bogdanovic' & Alec Brown.

Take the quotes from above, and factor them into the knowledge you have of the Suns' offensive / defensive philosophy combined with what you've been told you expected the Suns to do in this draft dictated by the players available on the board at their pick(s) when putting those picks up against the Suns roster... I know. Me too.

T.J. Warren

Lets just say, I wasn't too crazy about this pick. Adreian Payne #StretchFourInsane!!! was still on the board, and I was draft-crushing, hard. So bitter when his name wasn't called. Anyway,
Dat highlight video, though. He'll still have to pick one of his three jump shots moving forward, because his shooting motion changes the further away he finds himself from the rim, but a lot of what bothered me about Warren, (ball dominant, operates in areas Hornacek would appear to want to keep open, weak defensively, flailing "STAY AWAY FROM ME!!!" 3-point shot), was actually alleviated during summer league.

His finishing potential on the fast break looks extremely promising. That euro-step finger-roll with either hand is delicious. He moves well without the ball. He can finish confidently through contact. The defensive concerns, for me, are minimal. He's sneaky as hell with his rebounding and his interior release, no matter the shot, is freaking awkward quick and effective.

He isn't a project. He's a product fresh off the assembly line, that needs to be polished, tuned, and put on display. He's the most ready of all the Suns' prospects over the last two drafts.

Tyler Ennis
Short term: Ish Smith upgrade, hopefully. Fluid with the ball. QUICK handle - watching him in summer league, his handle is insane. Not a fast, ultra-athletic guy, but has quick burst and change-of-direction along with satellite-eyes-up court vision. While the other talented guards on the team score first, Ennis can attack, but is going to keep your system humming by making all of the right plays.

Defensively, I guess we'll see. Man-defense wasn't exactly his thing in the Syracuse system, but what the "Orange Zone" gives you is great passing-lane anticipation skills. Being able to intercept passes during an offensive scheme shift doesn't just lead to fast break points. It leads to SC Top Ten fast break points.

We'll see what becomes of him. My guess is he ends up being one of the better guards in Phoenix Suns history - after he is traded and then re-signed. Spartan right of passage scenario, guys.

What do these picks say? (Honorable mention to Bogdan and Alec)

To me? A couple of things stand out here.

  1. Picking the best player available in regards to the system you have in place seems to have been followed to the letter here. Prospects who were more "opening day ready" and seemed to "fit" more seamlessly were bypassed. No Gary Harris, no Adreian Payne, no K.J. McDaniels, and no Patric Young! Ugh.
  2. The slight target shift away from uber-athletic two-way beasts suggests that perhaps the Suns are satisfied currently with the athleticism on the team and turned their attentions to prospects who could bring not only depth, but skills necessary to expand and intensify Jeff Hornacek's coaching schemes.

I fully expect T.J. Warren to scream loud and long during training camp and pre-season. I will not be shocked if his name is called far more frequently than that of Len and Goodwin during their rookie campaigns.

"GUARD" your investment. It is that simple.

If you don't know by now, the Phoenix Suns are going to try to run teams to death. This is not your Grandfather's Barkley / KJ Suns. It isn't even your older cousin's SSOL Suns.
These Suns will, indeed, attempt to run you out of the gym. The way they attempt to execute this plan appears to be very similar to eras past, but rest assured it is vastly different - a new concept introduced into the known tradition. The Phoenix Suns plan to run teams out of the gym on the break, but also in the half court, and by wreaking freeway-vehicular-car-chase havoc on the perimeter defensively.

In order to do this, the Suns have employed a myriad of guards consisting of big ones, small ones, long ones, tall ones! They are all tasked with absolutely destroying you if they end up with the ball, but in order to see continued success and involvement as one of Hornacek's assassins, you have to commit to the religion.

How many of the guards in Phoenix actually have?

Being able to crush your enemies at the will and command of your general is a very important, and delicate thing. The #Dragon Goran Dragic was the chief lieutenant in this area of hardwood-warfare during the 2013-14 NBA season. He had a stellar All-NBA season, and probably would have had an all-star and playoff campaign had he been healthier and less exhausted at the end of the year.
Why wasn't he healthy? Well, things happen in a long NBA season, but Dragic has been playing basketball constantly, endlessly, unrelentingly since he was traded to Houston. The Suns implored their flame thrower to actually, you know - REST this off-season.

Well, he didn't. Even with game restrictions in place while playing internationally, Dragic will still run a greater risk of injury and late-season exhaustion. The Suns didn't exactly break out the pitch forks and torches, but you could see there was a tiny bit of displeasure there.

Meanwhile, The #DayWalker, Eric "Blade" Bledsoe (and other half of the #SlashBros!!!) still thinks he's worth north of 80 million bucks as per his agent.

What an electrifying 2-way beast he is.* How young and ridiculously athletic he is.* How violent and full of on-court defensive-terrorism his style is.* How easily he shifts directions and tosses Chris-Paul-learned lobs.*

*All performances and mind-boggling Bledsoe play subject to change due to an oft-operated-on knee.

Eric Bledsoe remains unsigned, and that doesn't seem to be anybody's fault but Eric Bledsoe and his agent, who is currently "handling it." At the very least, I wish Bledsoe would actually come out and say he likes Phoenix or, that he's found the fans and the community in general to be a very positive aspect. He doesn't say any of that - he doesn't say anything really.
As free agents go, he does seem to play the part of "hired mercenary" pretty well. He'll play hard for the organization that pays him, and that's it. It would have been interesting to see if he would have signed an offer sheet to play for the Bucks or the Wolves just because they offered to pay him. Winning situation be damned.

I actually wonder how comfortable the front office of the Suns actually are with Bledsoe or Dragic. The rhetoric has been constant: The team wants as many guards to run Hornacek's system relentlessly. Putting that against "guard insurance," I wonder how even that split is.

The #Trilogy

Quickly, to add to that last point, the Suns brought in RFA Isaiah Thomas who has since melded with the #SlashBros to create the #Trilogy. You're welcome.

All in on Suns 2nd year center Alex Len

The Suns didn't draft Patric freakin Young any extra interior beefcakes. They didn't trade for any either. They didn't sign any via free agency. No, Anthony Tolliver doesn't count.

That tells you all you need to know about Alex Len. He is, in fact, still the future of the Phoenix Suns front court. He is going to be the man responsible for single-coverage against those monsters that repeatedly eviscerated the Suns last season. He is the eventual answer to the rebounding issues. He is the eventual answer to drawing fouls down low and getting the opposing team into the penalty. He is the eventual answer to opening Hornacek's offensive scheme from the elbow and down. No matter how many guards are brought in, Alex Len is still the eventual alpha.

Miles Plumlee remains the athletic freak-nasty on the high action offensively while being the weak-side dunk stealer defensively. That's fine and all, but the team still envisions Alex Len as the big man on campus... in time.

Ryan McDonough will NOT overpay; will get what he wants for less than market dictates

Eric Bledsoe, Channing Frye, Anthony Tolliver, and Isaiah Thomas prove this point on varied areas of the spectrum.

Channing Frye is an Orlando Magic stretch-4 because Phoenix wasn't going to go anywhere near 8 million a year for his services. Instead, they gave Tolliver just over 3 million bucks over two years, (guaranteed money there), to do most of what Channing used to.

Thomas, numbers-by-numbers, matches up almost identically to Kyrie Irving. While Irving got a cool 90-million dollar extension, McDonough brought in #SixZero for around one third of that price. Also, the Suns GM was able to offer that contract for Alex Oriakhi, a trade exception, and a Costco crate of potato chips. Salt & Vinegar I believe it was.

That is simply how the Suns GM operates. Celebrate this, boys and girls:

  • Ryan McDonough has traded, essentially, Jared Dudley, Luis Scola, Alex Oriakhi, and some bits n' pieces for Eric Bledsoe, Gerald Green, Miles Plumlee, Isaiah Thomas, and all of your loving hearts.
  • He didn't overpay Channing Frye, and watched him move a lot closer to an ocean where sharks swim, for those of you who care about that sort of thing.

Great things to come, but here are a couple things I'm waiting to see happen

I need Gerald Green extended. I need this. I want this. The team simply must keep him. Even with all the draft picks and acquisitions, the Suns haven't added another player who you can give the ball to and say, "just go kill them for 5-8 minutes please. We need it."
It's taken awhile, but right now? He really is that good. He is also the only guy on the roster who can slide into that starting guard position if either starting-pair of the #Trilogy go down to injury. Get it done.

#Top5Protected

All of you guys who tweet. Please start using this in connection to any and all Lakers-related news. Every time they announce a stupid Kobe-appeasing move, or even because you just feel like it, toss that hash tag out there. The Suns are going to be better than they were this previous season, and they're going to get another lottery pick for their troubles. Hooray.

Overall I'm pretty happy with the happenings in the valley up to this point. The Bledsoe situation is irritating, but the Suns have the high ground. T.J. Warren is less of a worry in my eyes, and I'm secretly pulling for Alec Brown.

Well, maybe not so secretly. Go Suns.